A93120 Strategic Entrepreneurship Advanced

Scuola di Economia e Management
Syllabus
Academic Year 2017/18 Second Semester

foto
Docente TitolareFred Van Eenennaam
E-mailfvaneenennaam@liuc.it
OfficeBuilding M11 wing 1, Second floor
Phone

Learning Objectives

The Microeconomics of Competitiveness Program was developed at Harvard Business School by Professor Michael Porter and a team of colleagues and is designed to be taught at universities around the world. This Strategic Entrepreneurship Advanced course adds to this program by taking the business and entrepreneurs view using 4 different cases.

Course objective is to train future leaders of business and government in strategic entrepreneurship. 

Learning targets

Course Content

Four different companies representing 4 different clusters/sectors are studied and discussed. The perspective are the decision /moments of truth the different CEOs/Entrepreneurs have or are facing.

How they deal with or could have dealt with these faces of transition is the core focus of the “entrepreneurial spirit” required to navigate in these circumstances. We will discuss whether the location or cluster of these companies has had a positive or negative effect on their development.

Course Delivery

The sessions consist of a case discussion, followed by a lecture or discussion on the key concepts. Sessions will take up to 2 hours of case discussion and 1 hour of reviewing concepts/ideas. The schedule will be announced as soon as possible.

The course is taught using the case method, together with readings and lectures. The case method requires extensive advance preparation by students for each class. Grading will be clarified at the first session.

 

Course Etiquette

The instructors require all students to have studied all reading materials prior to class sessions. Classes are designed on the basis of this requirement, and a lack of preparation will adversely influence the quality of the learning process.

Students are required to attend all class sessions. If for any valid reason an absence can absolutely not be avoided, please inform the program coordinator.

Required Readings

Literature

  • Collins, J. Building Companies to Last
  • Courtney, H. e.a. Strategy Under Uncertainty
  • Kerr, W. Harnessing the Best of Globalization

Cases

All cases will be made available and should be prepared before class sessions. Please, contact Federica Belfanti (fbelfanti@liuc.it) to request access to cases and lectures.

Course Evaluation

Syllabus

Session 1
28/02/2018
Time: 10:00
Hours of lesson: 3
Instructor: F. Van Eenennaam

Topics:

LEGO Case

Description

The world famous toymaker, The LEGO Group (LEGO), assembles an internal management team to create a strategic report on LEGO's different product lines and business operations. In recent years, numerous threats had emerged against LEGO in toy industry. The acquisition of Marvel Entertainment by The Walt Disney Company created major implications for valuable toy license agreements. LEGO also recently lost a long legal battle with major competitor MEGA Brands, makers of MEGA Bloks, with a European Union court decision that removed the LEGO brick trademark. Furthermore, new competition is preparing to enter the marketplace from Hasbro, the second-largest toymaker in the world, with the company launching a new rival product line called Kre-O. It is critical for the management team to identify where to expand Lego's product lines and business operations, in order to develop a competitive strategy to continue the organization's recent years of financial success and dominance in the building toy market.

 

Case Questions

  1. What has led the LEGO Group to the edge of bankruptcy?
  2. What is your assessment of management moves during “the growth period that wasn’t”(1993-1998) and “the fix that wasn’t” (1999-2004)?
  3. As Jorgen Knudstorp, what would you do throughout the LEGO Group in order to turn the company around? Be specific.
  4. Which matrix should Lego have used to steer the company away from the first and near second bankruptcy?
  5. During the 1990s, which strategic assumption and which assumption that Mr Fix had should have been checked?

Readings:

Article - Collins, J. Building Companies to Last

Session 2
28/02/2018
Hours of lesson: 3
Instructor: F. Van Eenennaam

Topics:

Intel Corporation Case

Description

The case describes three stages in Intel's history: the initial success and then collapse in DRAMs and EPROMs, its transition to and dominance in microprocessors, and its move to become the main supplier of the building blocks for the Internet economy. Allows a rich discussion of industry structure and transformation in DRAMs and microprocessors, creation of competitive advantage and value capture, and sustainability.

 

Case Questions

  1. Why did Intel fall off in the DRAM market and how were they able to create and sustain a competitive advantage in microprocessors?
  2. How did one make money in this business?
  3.  How did Intel create and sustain its competitive advantage in microprocessors?
  4. What were the main threats to sustainability of competitive advantage from 1986 to 1998? How did Intel deal with each threat?
  5. How do you evaluate Craig Barrett’s “Internet Building Blocks” strategy for Intel?
  6. Why did Intel choose new businesses such as networks, wireless communications and online services?

Readings:

Article - Courtney, H. e.a. Strategy Under Uncertainty

Session 3
10/05/2018
Time: 10:00
Hours of lesson: 3
Instructor: F. Van Eenennaam

Topics:

Rocket Internet

Description

Rocket Internet builds startups in online retail businesses. Throughout the years, Rocket Internet has been criticized for its “copycat” strategy of founding startups that replicate the business models of other established, successful companies.

 

Case Questions

1.     What are the key success factors in terms of selecting individual ventures for replication/cloning? How do you rate the ventures listed below, in terms of being viable candidates for international replication?

-  Dropbox:  https://www.dropbox.com

-  Gilt: http://www.gilt.com

-  Rent the Runway: https://www.renttherunway.com/rtr_home

-  Zipcar: http://www.zipcar.com/

2.     Beyond the choice of venture to copy, what are the key success factors or Rocket in terms of the countries it has targeted, the global platform it has established, and other factors?

3.     Are replication platforms good or bad for the development of entrepreneurial ecosystems in countries? Do you find global replications to be ethical?

4.     Would you invest in Rocket Internet today?

Readings:

Article - Kerr, W. Harnessing the Best of Globalization

Session 4
10/05/2018
Time: 14:00
Hours of lesson: 3
Instructor: F. Van Eenennaam

Topics:

Vita: Cosmetics in the Nordics

Description

Vita is a Norwegian cosmetics retailer owned by FSN Capital, a Scandinavian private equity company. The company has a strong market position in Norway. The case focuses on two strategic issues: how to develop an e-commerce strategy to supplement the company's traditional retail strategy, and how best to grow the company in Sweden. While both of these are potentially important future growth drivers, they also entail large investments in new capabilities, adversely affecting current performance. Given FSN's investment horizon, what is the best way to balance the short and long-term?

 

Case Questions

  1. What is the Vita’s value proposition for its consumers/franchises?
  2. How strong is the omnichannel approach and the online/offline approach?
  3. What would you advise Vita to do next and what would you recommend to investors?

Readings:


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